Scrapbook paper
Adhesives
Cutting materials such as a craft knife and paper trimmer
Pictures
A Scrapbook

These items are the foundation for any scrapbook.

When you first decide to go shopping for products for your scrapbook ideas I would recommend you start out buying items in small quantities. This way you can play around with different products and work out which ones you prefer before spending a huge sum of money. It also gives you a chance to experiment with different craft materials.

Select bits and pieces that you find attractive and inspire you.  Have a picture in mind before you shop so you can purchase paper and items that will correspond with the picture you are going to be placing in the scrapbook. You may even consider taking the picture with you making selecting embellishments to decorate the page even easier.

You will need to make sure all of the items for your scrapbook ideas are protected in some form so ensure that you only use materials that are scrapbook safe and acid free. This will maintain your scrapbook pages and prevent them from deteriorating over time.

Before you leave the house to shop for items for your scrapbook ideas make sure you write a list. It will be extremely tempting to buy vast amounts of papers and embellishments.  Not only is this very expensive but it can leave you feeling overwhelmed and unsure what one of your scrapbook ideas to use.

Ideally you need to have a theme in mind so you only purchase items that match and compliment each other.

If it is your first scrapbook then I would recommend that you do not purchase complex or fiddly craft items as you may find the whole thing extremely difficult and end up being put of scrapbooking altogether.  It is far better to begin with basic materials and purchase ready made embellishments before you try to make your own.
Over time you will learn how these are put together and before you know it you will be saying ‘I don’t need to buy that, I can make it myself!’